


Legerdemain

by Exphelk



Category: Little Witch Academia
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-27
Updated: 2021-03-06
Packaged: 2021-03-13 14:07:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 14,711
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29029920
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Exphelk/pseuds/Exphelk
Summary: This is a strange mix of Casino/Mafia AU.Akko has started a new job at a casino and has no idea what she's essentially stepped into. Is completely unaware that the rest of the 9 (not witches in this case) are actually part of a larger Mafia effort.This will be only small parts of a story because I don't want to tell every part of it, I'm just getting onto paper the parts that make my brain rattle the most.Chapters are going to be posted in a chronological order to make it easier to follow. However I am an inconsistant narrator as I only want to focus on the bits I'm interested in. There will be smut in later chapters and more actual 'Gang/Mafia/Casino' shenanigans lateron, but I'm having fun exploring the characters for now.Thank you for your time.
Relationships: Atsuko "Akko" Kagari & Everyone, Diana Cavendish/Atsuko "Akko" Kagari
Comments: 6
Kudos: 37





	1. Lipstick

She was partway through a shift, still the new girl, still trying. 

Akko was all big smiles this evening, body language confident and carefree. Customers liked her, sure, and she was good at winning over people who she wouldn’t have to come back to in 12 hours time, but what mattered most to her right now, was her new colleagues agreeing with her. 

After getting to know them all for the past few weeks she was feeling more confident, those grins weren’t just for customers but her new friends. She was enjoying this. She got to enjoy them.

Anticipating when Lotte needed to have a player distracted and lead away lest their temper and poor fortune spilled over into the other patrons had become a second art. Figuring out how many people were in the building and how many guests Amanda had screened, meant she was careful to find a minute or so to bring the bouncer a drink mid shift. It was something she had started to do innately, Amandas aggressive snark had even been decisively absent this evening when she thanked her earnestly.

And so Akko was good at anticipating! She was good at busy, at crowded. She wasn’t afraid to be good at this and it was rewarding to be good with this. Finding Sucy in a crowd if she thought Jasminka might need a hand had been a big step, Sucy had been so scary at the beginning but something about the girl taking what Akko said at face value and going to assist whenever Akko bought anything up had been reassuring. 

No, she was hardly afraid of Sucy.

But she was still so nervous around Diana.

Maybe it was the fact she was her boss; who had hired her so quickly and easily that perhaps she could just as soon fire her. Or maybe it had something to do with the crush she absolutely could not ignore.

In turn that made Hannah and Barbara an intimidating duo as well.

Hannah and Barbara were always together, if one of them was told something the other just knew and Akko could have sworn that they could communicate telepathically. Witchcraft! Magic! But, real magic, not her sleight of hand card tricks -despite how good they were- could hold a candle at whatever psychic link the two had going on. 

In her head, she had expected more rambunctious behaviour from Hannah, who was by far the more adventurous of the two. But no, it was Barbara who had cornered Akko, hands deliberate and reaching for her face in a back room when Akko had gone to down her glass of water.

“Wait wait what, what did I do wrong?”

Whether it was nerves or the new situation with Barbara that meant she had just responded by freezing and sputtering out a question, she wasn’t sure, but here the older girl was, one hand tipping her chin up and angling her face to and fro.

This was entirely different to anything she had expected.

“No, I’m just… Testing a hypothesis”

The cryptic answer did not ease her mind and being inspected had her on edge.

Akko only had one hand free, with the other holding a full glass of water, but it didn’t stop her spilling some on the floor and she jolted,  
“Ah! Sorry! Sorry I’ll-” her whole body moving to look at the damage whilst Barbaras hands moved to the pocket of her suit jacket, pulling out something and-

“Stop. Just stop moving, Akko.” The tone was tense and she froze.

Lipstick. Oh. She was holding lipstick.  
The same colour as the blush she could feel heating up her cheeks.

Akko complied, her leg tapping up and down nervously creating a gentle rhythm for her own sake and Barbara applied the makeup without hesitancy. 

“There. I think you look-”

And then the door opened and Diana stepped in without looking inside, holding the door and keeping it open with her foot whilst turned around and finishing a conversation with someone out of view. And if anything was going to kickstart Akko into a small panic. it was this. She didn’t want to think she was goofing off back here. She couldn't afford for Diana of all people here to think less of her.

She’ll finish the drink and get out.

Akko had been about to bring the glass to her lips as though she had forgotten the lipstick and froze. She didn’t even know what she looked like, would drinking from a glass smudge this? No! No she did not have time for this. She didn’t think about things like this. Barbara wouldn’t sabotage her. 

She had a job to do and she was not doing it, whilst she was confident that Barbara had no malicious intent, right now she wasn't even looking at her new colleague. She had places to be.

The glass was abandoned on the side, and in a few strides Barbara was left standing alone, a smug smile thrown across her face just as Diana turned around into the room and just; stopped. The door closed behind her and the silence was palpable, even if Akkos nervous fidgeting was present she couldn't go anywhere. Diana was now literally blocking the door.

Blue eyes dragged all the way down Akkos body and then back up to her lips and… That was the same colour as her eyes and the way she squirmed and; oh, oh no. Barbara was here too.  
“Yes, thank you, please continue” Diana was monotone, lifting a hand nonchalantly and stepping aside to let a very red faced Akko out the room. When the door closed again she fidgetted with her cuffs as Barbara stalked forward  
“Well, I thought the colour was pretty fetching, no?” She was poaching Diana for an opinion.

“Ah yes. Well. She is rather-” Diana stared down at Barbara who was smiling innocently, as if she hadn’t just watched Diana undress Akko with her eyes, as if she hadn’t just watched her lose her train of thought.  
“Fetching.” She finished, standing her ground and daring Barbara to say anything that would challenge her.

“Fetching indeed” Barbara went to walk past Diana in the gap that was created when she let Akko through and left Diana to her empty silent room. 

Barbara knew what Diana needed, she didn’t need to say anything about the reddening of her friends ears, so perhaps a minute alone to compose herself lest the great Diana Cavendish experience any other emotions this evening was needed.

Less than an hour later Hannah found Barbara behind the bar where they shared a smirk and a fistbump.


	2. Ace of Hearts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A good few things inspired this. I don't even know where to begin.  
> I have proof read this a fair bit but I'm sure I'll add an EDIT in when I've read this tomorrow and noticed 814 different errors.
> 
> Thank you for your time.

Also, and I do apologise, but you need to watch [THIS](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gcl7PccJmb0) before reading the chapter and you'll understand when you get to the part.

-

More than a few paychecks under her belt meant that a few months had turned into half a year.

And not a single day so far had been dull, there was always something; eccentric customers were honestly the tip of the iceberg and she loved the energy and the pulling of her attention in multiple places. There weren’t many moments where Akko preferred the still and quiet, never too much for reflection and more of just enjoying and _living_ . But the more she did get to stop and just _be_ the more she just wanted to indulge herself within this new group.

She loved this. She loved them, she adored them, all of them.

The shift just ended had been her favourite type, stressful with none of the drama and the closedown routine had begun. Which firstly meant removing her _outfit_.  
She honestly, didn’t mind wearing it, black corset one piece, cuffs and collar and the telltale ears painted her in a _very_ specific light.

She wasn’t afraid of her body or how she looked, but the outfit served a purpose, and after the doors were closed, well… She didn’t _need_ to wear it for them, her friends.

Diana had granted her request almost too quickly after one particularly more dramatic and less stressful shifts where once the doors had closed, Akko completed a very short set of stretches and turned to find Diana watching with a very indiscriminate look on her face. 

Perhaps she hadn’t liked the outfit? 

Akko was never sure what she was thinking. Diana clearly hadn’t been happy with what she got her to wear every shift, she’d barely even had a reaction after the lipstick incident. She wished she would just tell her what was wrong instead of catching the silent looks.  
But that was okay! If anyone was going to win Diana over, it was her.

She could start by impressing her first by actually finishing her job, but that would only happen if she didn’t waste time thinking about all of this in the backroom. She exited the little nondescript storage changing room with a very basic white top and black denim jacket combo, swapping out stockings for skinny jeans and high heels for trainers.

Now she could start tidying up.

“Akko. Drink this” Sucy drawled at Akko when she rounded a corner, pushing a glass of water into her hands. Her expression was always just a little bit sunken, a little bit sinister. But that was Sucy and if she had learned anything about her, it was that actions spoke louder than words.

“Thank you!” She had all but beamed in response, bringing the drink to her mouth and downing the contents immediately. Akko hadn’t seen Sucy smile many times, but here the girl was, teeth bared, sharp and pulled up into what she would imagine was her version of a toothy grin.

She really did look like a dragon when she smiled like that.

“I’ll pass this back to Jaz and get on with things” Akko tilted the empty glass up, waving Sucy away when she headed for the door again in the opposite direction of her friend.

Sucy had removed her suit jacket, unrolling her shirt cuffs and unbuttoning them, she was always completely in black; either a full suit jacket and shirt and tie or just waistcoat and shirt. This time she just strolled without any real urgency, jacket folded in one hand whilst her gaze dragged down to a phone in her hand, attention lost from Akko, but shark grin ever present.

-

“JAZ!”

  
Akko had all but jumped up behind Jasminka, announcing her presence a little more loudly than usual, and resting on her tiptoes had leant her head so close to her shoulder whilst she pushed a glass in front of the bartender.

Her shout had attracted the attention of Hannah and Lotte who all turned their heads towards Akko, least of all from Jasminka who had barked a pearl of laughter at the -albeit very characteristic- exuberance of their newest member. 

“Okay! I’m gonna get started, let me know if you need anything”, Akko had turned around in a flash and was two steps away before Jasminka managed to attract her attention.  
“Wait wait, at least have a drink before anything else, little rabbit”

Oh that pet name was new.   
Jaz’ tone was mirthful and Akko felt a grin on her face spike at the same time as a slight blush.

But she did pause in steps to grab the handle of a broom and cocked her head at the bartender. “Another one?” a bemused look ended in smile, “Sucy gave me some water just a minute ago.” She pointed at the empty glass she’d placed in front of her, and then promptly turned around, adding a flourish to her actions by swinging the broom in her hands and resting it on the other side of the bar. “Thanks though!” She shouted and then the conversation was finished, evidently because Akkos focus was on her work and off she went.

At the name of Sucy being dropped, Lotte had matched her gaze with Jasminka behind the bar, who had all but frozen, and whilst Akko couldn’t possibly imagine the two of them looking so furious in a moment, she was saved from the very dark and steeled look between the two.

Akko was in another room already so they hadn’t need worry about being overheard when both Lotte and Hannah moved forward, Jasminka pulling the glass up and eyeing it suspiciously.

“Surely she hasn’t?” Hannah was the first to bring up the topic that had been on their minds.

Jasminka started to sniff the glass before passing it to Hannah, who without warning upended the glass, bringing the very dregs into a little droplet which she caught with a finger, bringing it to her lips. There was a brief moment where both Lotte and Jaz just stared at Hannah, eyes boring into the glass and concentrating on the aroma and taste. 

“It just tastes like water,” She finally conceded, to which Jasminka let out a large breath she hadn’t even realised she’d been holding. That very pensive look gone and relief turned to a sigh.

Still, Sucy was reliable and Lotte didn’t look convinced.

Hannah was forever a good peacekeeper at these moments. There was no jumping to conclusions, there was a likely outcome and things to check first.

“Okay, I’m going to grab Diana and find Sucy, Lotte keep an eye on Akko. I’ll be back”

Maybe Sucy had just given her water.

Maybe Sucy hadn’t drugged Akkos drink. 

\---

Oh 

Sucy had absolutely not just given Akko water.

Sucy had absolutely drugged Akko.

Hannah had gone upstairs to find Sucy on her way down, looking at her phone. And when she had enquired about the chance that something had been slipped into her drink, she had returned a sharp toothed grin and a very unsettling laugh. 

This was going to be a disaster. 

\---

Diana was livid. 

Hannah rarely saw Diana's emotions slip into her body language, but as she stood behind their boss -and right now Diana was not being anyones friend- she couldn’t help but see the bright navy suit jacket stretching across muscles whilst she tensed, showing off the seam around the top of her arms threatening to give, and then that gave way to a brief shake of her arms and a cutting squeak of the black leather gloves whilst her hands clenched into tight fists.

And then she deflated. A deep inhale. 

Hannah was impressed.

Sucy had the most tense relationships with everyone, always the quickest at getting them on edge. But between Diana and her, they held the highest levels of respect. Both excellent at what they did, but so wildly different sides of the coin in their approach.

It wasn’t uncommon for her and Sucy to be found at the end of stressful events going through a rapid plan of what to prioritise.

Sucy was Dianas proactive assistance, and Amanda was sought after for reactive measures.  
Hannah wasn’t sure what that meant for right now.  
Sucy always had a reason. Diana wasn’t going to get that reason if she lost her temper. 

“This conversation is not for you, Hannah.” Diana stated very unexpectedly, tone neutral. Sucy responded with a shrug and a vague wave of her hand, looking behind Diana at Hannah.

There was a pause, a whole moment where indignation rippled through the redhead. _She_ was Dianas right hand, along with Barbara. There was _nothing_ that she didn’t get to be a part of.

Hannah wouldn’t have been able to take this so lightly and now she was the one letting the tension leave her body. Diana was smart, she knew what they were all thinking before they were. Diana would weave webs and situations around all of them but sometimes she needed time to process and it was this processing where she always felt she had to exact control.

Sometimes that meant having one less person in the room to think about.   
“I’ll be downstairs, please join us when you feel like sharing” Hannah was curt, expectedly rude, and breezed past both of them. She would find Barbara.

Diana would update her later. They would all be updated later. But that didn’t make this sting any less.

Barbara and Hannah were kept close, but she thought she held them too close sometimes, too. Defensive and loyal also made them dependant. It wasn’t ideal, but they worked together. Everyone in this worked together.   
They were family. She truly loved them all.

But their family had changed in the last few months. And _Oh_ by the Nines a big decision was going to be made today. This tension between her and Sucy had been coming to a boil for the last few weeks.

It was what was going to make this conversation harder. Diana knew exactly what it was going to entail. So they could either dance around each other or they could sit down and get to it. She sighed and leant back against the desk behind her. Her ‘office’ if they were calling this room that, was what you would have expected from a sad grey office block. Monitor, keyboard, desk, chair. And then filing cabinets. All locked.

Sucy had already walked around and pulled out the chair, rolling it to the expanse of space between Diana and the door who was looking at her completely expectantly.  
“You drugged Akko”

“You ask me to to complete a specific job I cannot do it if I am dancing around what if’s”

“You didn’t ask”

“Would you have said yes?”

“No”

Sucy raised her arms in indignation but the look on her face didn’t transform into that venomous sneer Diana would have expected had she started with vitriol. The outcome was the same, she knew the answer. They knew what this conversation was really about.

Then what was the point. Of all of this.

“Look, Diana. It’s not a case of ‘what if’ something happened -It’s been quiet and we are all on edge- _something_ is going to happen soon and It’s not IF she gets involved, it’s. When.” Sucy didn’t speed up her speech or shout, but her words became punctuated, pronunciation perfect and deliberate and it was finally eliciting a response from Diana, letting out an undignified breath through her nose from irritation.

As though this hadn’t gone through Dianas head. As though she didn’t know what was going on. She just. Hadn’t acted on it. Had let this drag on and on because they did all adore her, didn’t they? And if everything went south very quickly, were the lighthearted months worth the fallout?

Akko had the chance of bringing them all even closer, but she threatened to destroy them too.

Would it be worth the fallout? Was she worth the fallout?  
Of course she was.

Ah but she was still staring at Sucy, face giving away nothing, stiff and waiting. A slightly raised eyebrow encouraged her to continue.

“And. When. That. Happens. I want us to have options. Akko isn’t going to remember _anything_ from today, providing it works, providing i’m right”

And that was interesting wasn’t it? Sucy being _uncertain_.   
She was always right with her measurements and never second guessed herself so why start now? Diana wasn’t about to start asking why when she already knew the answer, but she could at least clarify something else.   
“The whole day?”

“Because when either of us fuck up we either get another shot of fixing things, or we get to wipe and move on”

And there it was.  
‘Either of us?’ Her and Sucy? Or Akko and the rest of them. Did it matter?  
Sucy cared about someone other than herself. Sucy cared about the rest of them in this house at least. Because if Akko got hurt or saw something she should not, then they had an option. It wasn’t the most ethical priority, but they weren’t really all about ethics were they.

“So this is your test run?”

“Yes”

Diana sighed and straightened out, standing at full height, posture perfect, intimidating to anyone outside of their circle, but to Sucy right now Diana just looked tired.  
“You didn’t ask.” She even sounded tired.

“Would you have said yes?”

Sucy stood up as well, if she was frustrated at repeating their conversation from two minutes ago, she didn’t seem to show it, atleast not in the way Diana had expected.   
Sucy just looked tense, mouth open, teeth very prominent, eyes sunken and unwavering. She was waiting for the answer.  
Would you have said yes, Diana? Would you have ever relinquished control?

“I don’t think it’s a decision I should be making by myself” 

This affected all of them, it always did. 

Diana couldn’t make this decision, but neither could Sucy; who, and Diana could be sure later that she had misunderstood the look on her face when she thought back to this moment, but Sucy looked _relieved_. 

“Tonight then?” Sucy asked, turning towards the door but stopped and turned back around when Dianas phone made an obnoxious noise and she watched Diana who, instead of respond to her, kept eye contact whilst she answered.

The silence was marred by that tinny reverberating speaker of the phone and the tension was so palpable Sucys teeth would have been able to trap and bite through it with ease.

The call ended, Diana heaved a long huff between her teeth. The shift in focus was clear.

“Not tonight. You’re going to take Jas, Amanda and Constance to see Avery”

And that was just the way wasn’t it?   
It wasn’t _if_ something happened. It was when.

\--

Okay. This might not be a disaster. Maybe it would be fine

Hannah returned downstairs, heading straight for Jasminka behind the bar. Catching eyes and sighing before making a play at standing tall and holding her hands up in an elaborate shrug.

“I am _very_ unhappy.” Jasminka had looked down at her phone, an array of texts from Constance and Amanda quickly breaking into black when she dimmed the screen and looking back up to Hannah.

“Don’t Jaz. I know. Just don’t.” It was a slight warning as well. The politics that would be playing in the background would likely rattle the house for a few days.  
“Dianas’ still upstairs with Sucy.” Hannah paused, sighing, “Akko will be fine, apparently her reaction will be really mild but she’ll crash really hard”

“Mild. Right. That villain doesn’t know the meaning of mild.” Jasminka frowned, her normal cheer entirely gone. “Next time I make her food, I’m going to poison it”

Right. Time for some redirection. She was playing peacekeeper right now.  
Sucy had said they had a time limit and that response was very bitter, especially for Jasminka.

“Jaz… I don’t even know if she can be poisoned. Wouldn’t that just. Make her stronger?” Hannah held her hand out at the room behind her and turned around, removing her jacket and leaving a plain white shirt, cuffs were pulled up to her elbows and she let out a deep exhale of breath she didn’t know she had been holding. 

“Come on. We’re going to play cards. Help me move the tables”

Except Jaz didn’t move because both of their phones pinged in unison and out of habit and obligation and responsibility they both looked and took in the information.   
“Avery needs help” Jasminka had spoken first, and was quickly pulling a face taking in the names and the directions they were being given very quickly and all at once. Information taken in and the change in body language was immediate.   
Jasminka needed to get ready and moved to leave without any fanfare.

“You can’t kill her Jaz, Diana will have your head”

Jasminka didn’t reply, the normal cheer and good nature gone and replaced with a grumble and a frown and left Hannah to the room by herself.

\--

Akko had done so well. 

She had tidied everything, floors swept and mopped, counters and tables wiped and Lotte was here too! She often completed her similar evening tasks without too much chatter, but today she had been asking questions in between tasks. Keeping her from drifting off into other thoughts.

And that had been nice! 

Lotte was nice. And cheerful and helpful and clever and patient and… and... She would observe people before adding onto conversations or situations. Really, Akko found her calming and thoughtful. Yes. Lotte was delightful.

They had spoken about family and history and places and food and home.

Before answering those last questions, she would respond with a melodic ‘hmm’ and Akko always loved hearing that. She had told her all about Japan, all about how she hadn’t seen her home in twenty years and that wasn’t really home, was it? Home had changed and she had never, ever felt more comfortable than she had now. Did Lotte understand? Were there people who acted as her home? What was Lotte’s anchor? In fact, what was her own anchor?

And then Lotte had tilted her head, distracted for a fraction of a second with her phone.

It didn't take long until another melodic ‘hmm’ dragged Akkos attention wayward again and wasn’t that such a nice sound?

“Hey Akko, are you feeling alright?”

When she spoke up, her voice was so... mesmerising.

Lotte was regarding her strangely, Akko had spent the last two minutes just... staring off into space, and her last two questions had been completely ignored. After Hannah had tasked her with ‘keeping an eye on her’, she had done just that, tidying away decks and chips slowly, the longer she was alone with the girl, the more sure she was that Sucy really had done something. 

Lotte pulled a face at the thought of finding Sucy later for a talk.

“I bet you could sing really well” Akko blurted out whatever thought was at the forefront of her head, the comment coming out of nowhere and it showed on Lottes face, the blank look turning into a return grin to the girl.

Lotte was regarding Akko carefully, her body language was fine, but her thought process was definitely erratic, still, she was the same level of earnest confidence. Maybe this really would just be fine. Footsteps near the entrance of the room turned her head, spying Hannah in the door, she tipped her a two finger salute before nodding at Akko, who was late to acknowledging her presence.

“Hey Akko. Come and play cards with us.” Hannah nodded her head toward the door and was not prepared for the barrage of questions that came forward before she had even turned around again. 

“Is this like secret cards? Do you guys play cards every night? Do I leave too early? Oh. What if I’m leaving too late. Do I take away from you’re time wit-” Akko had practically danced her first few steps to catch up the distance between her and Hannah, her hand gripping Lottes to get her moving and pulling the girl along before dropping it when she had caught up with Hannah. 

Ah, maybe her body language was a bit erratic as well.

Hannah turned her head to raise her eyebrows at Lotte when Akko walked ahead of her in the room and into the corridor joining the last area to the bar and main tables. Drowning out the incessant ramble wasn’t hard; she wasn’t being loud, but her tone was unfiltered curiosity bordering statements.

Hannah deliberately slowed her pace to nudge Lotte in the shoulder, talking low and just to her,  
“Sucy seems to think we have less than an hour before she’ll crash. But if this is the worst...” She gave an exasperated smile and waved a hand in Akkos direction. “Then maybe we’ll be okay.”

Lotte wasn’t convinced.

\--

Lotte still wasn’t convinced. 

Akko was very easy to coerce into sitting at the table granted, set up for a small group, two chairs on each side and then one at either head. Akko was joined by only herself, Hannah, Lotte and Barbara, who had been pulled away from whatever job Diana had given her for the evening, still wearing a blue sleeved dress with a thin belt around her midsection.

Currently it looked like Akko had an ‘all or nothing’ switch. Sat down she was now just point fixed looking off into the distance, completely still and silent, but the whole time she was walking she hadn’t shut up, Barbara had been missing for that bit.   
Hannah would be sure to update her later. 

Sucy had suggested they make sure she drink something if they didn’t want Akko to wake up with a headache. Barbara leant down just a little bit catch Akkos eyes with hers,  
“Hey it’s been a bit warm this evening, would you like a drink?”

It took a while, but all of a sudden her gaze fixed on Barbaras eyes and the vacant expression bloomed into a big grin. Akko was not completely _here.  
_“Oh yeah! that would be grea-”  
Hannah pushed a glass into one of Akkos hand at her agreement, water again; well. Just water this time.  
She hadn’t seen her standing off to the side, hadn’t seen them talk amongst themselves

“How do you _do that_?!”

The exclamation was so obviously aimed at Hannah and Barbara but here they were with no idea just what she was referring to. 

“It’s like magic... But actual magic.” Akko began starting out as a whisper as though that comment was just a thought not intended for anyone else. She hadn’t even explained what she was really talking about, but it was easy to infer. Her drink was very quickly forgotten on the table when she continued her little ramble in front of everyone here.

Hannah and Barbara were absolutely in sync. Magic, Akko would assure them. And absolutely not that she just didn’t hear them talking to one another, or paying attention and reading a room. 

“Like real life magic.” Akko leant back on her chair, her voice a bit quiet as though she was thinking about things, before her head snapped up to face Hannah.  
“I wish. I could be magic _with_ someone. It would only have to be one person. I only have hand magic. It’s not the same”

Lotte was opposite Akko, Hannah had sat on Akkos right, whilst Barbara had taken a seat to her opposite, she moved Akkos drink out of knocking distance.  
There was absolutely going to be a spilt drink casualty this evening. 

Lotte was going to the one who picked up this conversation  
“Hand magic?” she questioned, absently shuffling a deck of cards in her hands. Years of practise and monotony made this task look effortless.

“Yes! Like that!” Akko pointed at Lottes hands completing a basic strip shuffle and without warning she leant over the table plucked the cards straight out of her hands, she was far too excited and completely missed the dry look Lotte shot Barbara next to her when she all but stole the cards right out of her hands.

They were all very much silent and just watching Akko now, who mimicked the strip shuffle Lotte had just been completing, before splitting the deck and then completing a spring jump, stretching the gap between the cards mid action. A little added flair for a spectator. 

But Akko was the only one not watching her own hands, she was looking intently between Lottes and Barbaras face who were as transfixed on her hands just as much as she was their reaction. Not seeing Hannahs face mattered less to her when she heard a small chuckle on her right. 

“I love magic” Akko said with a big grin, holding and flicking over individual cards between her right hand, and with her left she pulled a card seemingly out of thin air and then placing it face up in her right hand, making a show of the eight of clubs on top before she gave her hand a shake and the card jumped to a four of diamonds. 

Akko was showing off.  
Hand magic? She was talking about sleight of hand. Card tricks.  
And Akko was surprisingly good. Even inebriated.

So if it was her attention she wanted, she had it, Lotte was the keenest of sight here, and if they were waiting for Diana to actually get downstairs, then they had time to kill.   
“Alright then. Show me.” She smirked and it hardly surprised her that Akko simply just looked _delighted_.

Hannah had left her seat very momentarily to fix drinks for herself and the other two now trapped at the table, they shouldn’t need to keep this charade up for too long, but keeping Akko distracted so as not to question the absence of the other members of their group would be incredibly easy if this was the way the evening was going.

Akko fanned the deck in her hands in a sweep, leaning forward and urged Lotte to take a card.

-

Sleight of hand card tricks were perhaps the last thing Diana had expected to come downstairs to five minutes later. But here Akko was, commanding the attention of the three other girls at the table.

She had hardly been impressed when Sucy admitted very nonchalantly that she had spiked Akkos water with _something_ , and whilst the matter was hardly dropped when Sucy insisted that no harm would actually befall Akko, she had not believed her for a second.

Sucy’s understanding of harm and Dianas were, in this instance at least, very different.

With Akko stood at the head of the table, currently making a very large show of waving her hands around, eyes directed at Barbara, she didn’t look like she was under too much of any type of influence and Diana was hardly about to make a spectacle of checking on her when it wasn’t needed.

She had walked around to the bar before setting her attention back on the table balancing two glasses in each hand Diana sat at the opposite end to Akko, keeping her gaze trained whilst taking in whatever trick the girl was running through now, which seemed to end with making a show of having empty hands and then clicking her fingers and producing a card out of thin air.

It was just the strangest scene. Akko had transfixed their attentions and each one of the girls at the table were smiling, Barbara had even laughed and nodded. Yes that was her card. Of course it had been.

Diana had become so used to Akko being aware of so many things and loved that she could walk in and command her attention so easily, but right now her presence hadn’t even been acknowledged by any of them at the table let alone Akko, and it took Diana sliding glasses in front of Barbara and Lotte to receive small nods in response. With Lotte taking up the mantle to direct Akkos attention once again. Another card trick, more sleight of hand.

It was Hannah who was not letting up in staring at her, Hannah who narrowed her eyes a little, Hannah was easy to betray, who wore her heart on her sleeve and had been slighted this evening. And it was Hannah who Diana would have to sit down and work this out. But right now, this wasn’t really about Hannah and whatever pettiness one of her oldest friends wanted to divulge in, was going to have to go one sided. 

Diana leant forward to push a glass in front of her, not rising to the frustration, not rising to the pit of broiled tension in her gut. Diana was just going to have to change the focus of her sight because this was about Akko, whatever was going to happen in the next few days with Hannah and Sucy and.. All of them. It wasn’t happening now. 

Diana cleared her throat loudly to command the table, back straight, drink in one hand; a small stout glass with an amber liquid. It was downed in one and was happy to find that by the time her glass was on the table again, fingers lingering against the rim, every pair of eyes was on her.

But she only cared about one person on this table right now.

“You will have to work harder to impress me with that,” she said, voice teasing but confident, she didn’t smile, Diana rarely, if ever did. But one eyebrow raised as she lifted her head up a little to trap Akkos attention and gaze.

She loved that it worked, but what she categorically did not love, was that Akkos bright red eyes were dimmed, pupils dilated and hiding the colour from her. This was still Akko, just a little more… exuberant. Her speech was fine, not slurred, her volume was normal, but it was like her thoughts and actions had no filter.

As if to prove that, Akko nearly knocked her chair over with her energy, turning and hands working quicker than Diana could even think, completely undoing whatever trick she had started. She stood at the head of the table Akko held her hands out and bowed.

She had taken Dianas bait and this next trick would be for her.

“I propose. A wager” Akko spoke with a false reverence, mouth open in a wide grin showing teeth, standing at height and lifting the two jokers from the deck box which had been discarded near Lotte, she held them up to her face so they were facing out to the four girls.

Like this, Akko truly looked like she was in her element, she was confident, commanding, a bit goofy, granted. But she was enjoying this. The undermining marr that made this a far less guilt free experience, was the dilation of her eyes, the very keen reminder that Akko was currently inebriated. 

  
Still, the show must go on.

Akko dropped her hands, jokers flopping face up on the table whilst she flicked through the deck and pulled out the ace of hearts. 

“All _you_ have to do is tell me where _my_ heart is” Akko held the two jokers in her hand with the ace before twisting each card in her hand and picking the deck up with her left to move it out of the way. Diana watched her intently and leant forward so her chin lay on her hands. She felt like she was being predatory. 

“Well obviously, there is going to be some bait and switch chicanery with your Ace.” Diana paused, catching onto the language Akko used. She had called the card _her heart_.   
“How will I know it’s the same card?”

And Diana didn’t think that Akko really could have gotten anymore bewitching if she tried, but there in front of her she laughed, short and sweet and eyes bright with mirth. The cards were placed face down on the deck and she reached into her jacket pocket, producing a tube of lipstick she applied it -perfectly- all the while not breaking her sight. 

Without any fanfare, she picked the top card off the deck, twisting it in her hands to show off the ace of hearts, she kissed it and twisted it again. To her grip, the card now had a perfect kiss outline of her lips in the white between the number and the suit symbol.

“Are you happy now?” She asked, quickly moving the deck into her pocket and leaving herself with three cards in her hands.

The other three _guests_ at the table, because really -they were just watching this entirely unnecessary display unfold in front of them- were no longer players but simply here for the show. Barbara was the only one who turned her head to Diana, eyebrows raised to her as if to ask the same question Akko had.

Are you happy now Diana? Isn’t this everything you’ve wanted? Akkos attention, undivided?

“Yes, unquestionably,” Diana wet her lips, a dryness overtaking her mouth involuntarily “Please continue” she waved her hands and Akko offered that big grin again, but she just couldn’t keep her own mouth closed. “You said a wager?”

And then they all got to watch as a flicker of uncertainty crossed Akkos features. She had said that hadn’t she? A wager? And what was the aim of all of this again? Impressing Diana?

“If I impress you,” Akko started, and it was the first time in the evening that her speech had slowed down to a more reasonable level, to what they would consider normal, and there was a stillness, a seriousness that had been absent for all of the tricks she had run through with Barbara and Lotte.

“If I impress you,” She repeated, as if to herself, “Then you owe me a secret”  
“Deal”

The game was set.

Barbara had moved seats to sit next to Hannah, whispering something in her ear whilst pulling out her phone. She was going to record this, it was just tragic that the others were missing… Whatever this was. Lotte wasn’t turning her head to look at Diana, her head turned to watch Barbaras phone lining up Akko in its camera and then back to Akko.

“I have three cards in my hand. First ones a joker. Second ones a joker. Third ones the ace.”

[ “The Ace is on top. Where is the ace?” ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gcl7PccJmb0)

…

They were all laughing. 

Even Diana. 

And Akko got to watch as throughout her strange skit as Dianas expression changed. First it had been challenged indifference, confidence and then, bewildered and confused and then! As soon as it was clear where the trick was going, she had smiled. 

Akko made Diana _smile_ and it was glorious! The curl of her lips turned up and the peel of laughter, had she not been inebriated, would have made her heart stop.

Instead there was a surge of warmth in her chest and a giddiness that was an unnecessary addition to her body right then.

Hannahs unbelieving exclamation drowned out the laughs from Barbara and Lotte. And all Akko could do whilst they calmed down was smile to herself. She flipped each card over in tandem so they were face down against the table. The Joker, her surprising third card, the King and the Ace folded over so only the back of the cards were visible again. Her fingers lingered over the edge of the last card turned and her attention was taken when Lotte directed a question at her.

“When did you swap out one of the jokers?” She asked; genuinely curious. Lotte had watched Akko flick over and maneuver the cards in front of them, had thought she understood partway through what was happening but she hadn’t seen her swap out a Joker for a King. 

And then Akko’s soft smile was gone and replaced with that confident bravado and she wasn’t leaning over the table or the discarded cards anymore, she was up and around the table behind Lotte in a flash. She bought her hands down on her shoulders and as dramatically as could be mustered, declared that, “A magician never reveals their secrets”

It earned another set of laughs from Barbara and Hannah opposite them both on the table and Akko didn’t get to see the panicked look on Lottes face when she had -rather heavily- slammed her hands on the girls shoulders. Barbara was already reminiscing that she hadn’t been recording for that and -Hannah… Hannah did you catch the look on Lottes face just now?-

But Akko wasn’t acknowledging them, she was busy staring at Diana.  
“Did I win? Were you impressed?”

Of course Diana had been impressed. Of course she had! Ordinarily Akko was a breath of fresh air but right now she was also… manic and unpredictable and she had _still_ pulled off her sleight of hand trick. Of course she was impressed.  
She would have been impressed if Akko hadn’t done a single thing.

“Yes”

And then Akko was closer to Diana exactly as she had with Lotte, she had been so quick, her hands landed on Dianas shoulders but instead of proclaiming something with gravitas as she had done previous, her whole body leant forward and this time Hannah and Barbara didn’t laugh, they daren’t even move, just stared with bated breath.

Later on, Hannah would lament that Barbara wasn’t still recording for this too.

Akko pushed her hands down Dianas front, running her touch against shirt and underneath the jacket and if there had been any doubt that she wasn’t aware, in some manner, of what she was doing then the uncharacteristically low laugh wouldn’t have whispered against Dianas skin.

With Hannah and Barbara frozen, Lotte hadn’t quite anticipated this either. Watching Akko stalk around her, expression unreadable to begin with until her hands started to slide forward. And it could have been the light, or the angle of Akkos face pressing into Dianas collar but her eyes were dark and the smile was sultry and this was not at all what any of them had thought was going to happen. At least not _now. Not like this.  
_

And then there was Dianas expression. Eyes wide and pensive, body stiff and frozen for all of three seconds before Akko kissed her cheek and dragged her hands back up. Contact gone completely leaving her to turn her face to the right towards where Akko had literally just been.

A hand clipped her chin from the opposite side, turning her face and showing off the emboldened lipstick mark on her cheek. Diana instinctively turned in her chair, literal seconds away from standing up her hand found Akkos and gripped it with a fierceness that betrayed her.

“You never found my heart, Diana.” Akko said, tone mirthful but _low;_ in a way that was soft and quiet and… Slurred. and that gave her pause.

But watching Akko and really looking at her so close, now was as good a time as ever to break her gaze; goosebumps were raised spectacularly on her arms, her eyes were half lidded and dark and... She was going to pass out. Soon.

Hang on. Akko had said _heart._ The card? 

“What?”  
Diana hoped she didn’t look as addled as she sounded. A tiny, traditional part of her brain corrected herself. Pardon, excuse me- Akko, you might need to explain yourself.

“Hearts are best kept to someones chest” 

Oh. Oh! 

Diana didn’t let go of Akkos hand but her other was bought up and searched the inside of her pockets in her suit.  
She pulled out the kissed Ace of Hearts card.

It wasn’t even slow and torturous but oh, oh it sure felt like that. If a kindness could have happened at just this moment, then time could have stopped for her, or she could have been left alone with just Akko or, and this probably trumped every other option; Sucy could have not drugged Akko for her to get to this point. 

But then Akko fainted.

Diana was already in the motion of standing up, reaching out to wrangle a grip around both sides of Akkos jacket, and in the time that she had slumped backwards, a weird priority of limbs folding and gravity pulling meant that a few unceremonious steps were taken for Diana to stand above her, second hand moving from balancing herself to balancing Akko underneath her, grip secure at her waist and as gently as possible letting her body lay against the floor.

Barbara and Hannah were reactive as ever, and already Barbara was on the floor, pulling hair up out of Akkos face and waiting for Diana to step back and ungrip her so Hannah could straighten out her limbs.

This was their job, this was what they trained to complete and prioritise and Diana didn’t say a single word as they checked her pulse, her breathing, her eyes and then no time at all had passed before they silently moved her into the recovery position.

And Diana didn’t even think, she just. This was Akko, they all adored her. They all wanted her to be safe and close and she wanted Akko safe, and she wanted to keep her away from everyone else and she… 

“If you take her up to my room I’ll look after her”

And that had been the plan before all of this had transpired. She wouldn’t really sleep this evening anyway. But then things had happened and...

Lotte stood up, slamming her hands into the table, posture rigid and face scrunched up.  
“You will not” she warned. Voice tense, expression clear.  
“You will not take her to your room.”

As if. As if Diana, of whom Akko had just draped herself over, their Diana, who had shuddered and froze at the having Akkos body and face so close. Who had turned to putty under Akkos hands, would look after Akko.  
“You will take her to my room. I will watch over her and you _will not”_

Lotte truly had a righteous fury in her when she needed it. 

Right. Yes. That was directed at her… And it made sense. It would be… inappropriate for Akko to reside in her own room. Diana was tired and that coil of tension and bubbling anger in her stomach was ever present and this was mess. She was mess. The kiss on her cheek was a mess.

And Akko was supposed to forget all of this. 

Barbara was already picking Akkos unconscious form up and Lotte was leaving the room ahead of her. It had seemed that in this instance, outside of… business decisions and at least concerning Akko, that their normal hierarchy didn’t count for too much.

Normally Diana could count on her two oldest friends to back her up, but it seems that underhanding Hannah earlier meant that not only were they siding with Lotte; they did so without explanation or apology. Not that it was deserved or necessary. 

Diana was shaking, that broiling untempered anger dissipating with another deep exhale. She had turned around expecting to be alone in the room, she could have sworn she’d heard Hannah follow Barbara out, but here she was, an indignant expression and two glasses in her hands.

“Shall we, Diana?” Hannah asked, pushing the glass roughly into her hands and sitting back down at the table. She always was the peacekeeper when it mattered, even if it meant biting her tongue and feelings down. Hannah was volatile, but she had Barbara. And that control, even to think about at the end of a night, was always enough at the end.

“I think this conversation needs everyone involved, my dear” Diana sat down, a long deep inhale of breath followed by a slow deliberate exhale. She was at the end of her tether.

“Perhaps, we can start with just us two.”

“Yes, I suppose we can”

“But please wipe that lipstick off your cheek already”


	3. Reveal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akko is given some information and the rest of them don't know how to deal with a little bit of pressure.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to anyone who is reading this.  
> I must apologise because I hadn't intended on writing this interaction, but after speaking to a few people, the request to find out what generally happens around Akko 'finding out' was requested.  
> Whilst I intend on putting chapters up in a chronological fashion, I don't intend on having this as a perfect run on story. There will be massive gaps in time (sometimes) and I'm very selfish in that I only want to focus on the parts that interest me.  
> This makes me a VERY INCONSISTENT narrator. 
> 
> I have however tried very hard to give something that plays with all the characters in some way. You're still missing a lot of information as to the background and locations, but this is something that will be coming up in the future.
> 
> Thank you again to anyone who has read anything so far.

* * *

In Dianas defence. The more nervous and structured she needed to be, the more monotone she became. Which made what she was trying to say sound so very, very clinical.

“And so. We propose an unfortunate and timely ultimatum. We would like you to formally -and permanently- join our team, with the knowledge of everything that we have outlined. We want you to have a home here, with us. If you do not want to be a part of anything that has been explained this evening. Then we will regret to see you leave.”

“What?”

Akko looked _so_ bewildered and truly could Diana blame her? It had been a week past since finding out Akko was adept at sleight of hand, and the same amount of time since they had _incapacitated_ her.

It was a Monday evening and she had just had dinner with them all. Food eaten, plates cleared. They had laughed and joked and then, during a lull in conversation everyone but Diana, Lotte and Constanze had stood up and left the table with warm wishes and a declaration for bed. Hannah had kissed Akko on the cheek whilst Amanda ran her knuckles through her hair, mussing it up and leaving without another word.

The door closed behind them and that was strange. Stranger still was that it was almost unnaturally forced to lose so many players at the table all at once that even Akko questioned it. Smiling towards Diana and tilting her head when she turned around to look.

What had that been about? And why on earth did Lotte and Constanze look so nervous.

Why did _Diana_ look pensive. Oh this was suspicious.

With a sigh, which was very melodramatic; _especially_ for the soft and controlled figurehead. Diana had declared that ‘They hadn’t been very forthcoming with her’ and ‘We have something to tell you and it would be best if you listened to each of us first before asking any questions’.

Well what was she supposed to say at that. A frown and some pseudo sarcastic comment about them all sounding so serious and then over the course of an hour endless amounts of details were just dropped.

An hour and so much information. So. Much. Information. It was all too much.

The only one quieter than Akko was Constanze, who had stood up to _sign_ her explanation, her shared details and with a held breath and a frozen incredulous look on her face, she just took it all in. If Amanda had declared with swagger that her place of work and eight newest friends were actually a front for an organised crime ring that collaborated with law enforcement she could have happily laughed, thrown something at her and gotten on with her day.

As if. This wasn’t real. This couldn’t be real.

“Haha. Very funny, guys. I’m very gullible. I get it.” Akko was smiling, eyes flicking over the other women at the table. The grin was forced though because when had Diana, Constanze or Lotte ever really tried to trick or lie to her. 

She was staring directly at Diana and heard exactly what she didn’t want to hear.   
“Everything that’s been stated is factual”

Factual?  
Factual?!   
It was factual that Akko had been lied to for more than 6 months. Factual that they were in danger every day. It was factual that this was all some kind of a joke to them? Why hadn’t they told her? 

She didn’t care that this was all some kind of cover. She didn’t care! Honestly at some point she would have started to question things -and let's not start thinking about all the red flags she must have missed- but she had delighted in _them._ She had delighted in _each_ of them. How much of the last six months had been… Real? What kind of betrayal was she looking at?

Constanze had recently spent several afternoons with her delving into old record shops, she had gone hiking with Jasminka and Sucy, stargazed with Barbara and Lotte, hid away with Hannah to read comics on rainy days, Amanda had attempted (and attempted had been the right word) dirt biking with her and with Diana… She had...

Ughhhhh.

The noise that left Akkos mouth was long and exasperated. This was a joke, this had to be a joke. An elaborate ruse. Had she missed a date? Was it April 1st again so soon? Was there some culture specific day to lie-to-the-people-you’ve-worked-with-and-loved-for-over-6-months that she was unaware of?

“And what on earth is your magic solution if I decide I don’t want to be a part of this? What happens then?” Akko asked but wasn’t looking at any of them, the question was almost an attempt to call their bluff. Her hands were up and palms pressed deep into her eyes. She didn’t want to look at their dumb faces. She didn’t need to see Lotte looking sorrowful, she didn’t need to see Constanze judging her.  
She didn’t want to see Diana looking apprehensive.

“We… I can make you forget”  
The cringe that worked its way through Diana was full bodied. She knew what the reaction was going to be and she got it when Akko _slammed_ her hands into the table and partially stood up, towering over -for once- all of them sat down. 

Angry was an understatement. She was furious. And confused and betrayed. Make her forget? Forget?! How? By silencing her? Oh by the nines were they going to _kill_ her? Is that what that meant?

“Explain. You have to explain. Now”

Maybe it was looking down on Diana for once, who normally stood just shy of a whole head higher than her, but she looked _guilty,_ which was a complete war with her very curt and monotone reply.

“I... have a drug that incurs a short term memory loss” Diana started, and just watched as the furor rippled through Akkos face and into her hands curling into fists. She put a hand up to pause whatever retort was about to come and continued. In the name of honesty, she had promised the seven of her closest the night before that Akko should be told _everything._

“We have used it on you before”

The range of emotions through her face was more impressive than anything else.  
Anger and then her eyes narrowed, Akko dropped her gaze and frowned. Each of the women in front of her recognised this as deep thought. The pause in everything whilst those gears turned.  
Used it on her before? What? When had she lost time? The only time had been…   
Oh.

She fell back to her seat, shoulders sagging with the weight of the realisation. 

It was the first time during this conversation that Diana had looked away from Akko and down at her hands. She pulled out her phone out and slid it across the table, face up and awake with a video paused.

Akko felt a full body sensation chill run from her feel to her chest and she felt sick. If she was still holding onto a sliver of ‘this isn’t real,’ then that would have gone out the window now. She did not have a recollection of this video being taken and she hadn’t even watched it yet. She picked it up and just stared at the frozen visage of herself paused on the first frame.

She couldn’t face this. She couldn’t face them. Her conversation was with Diana and Diana alone.

“I do not-” she started before clearing her throat when her voice wavered and refused to look up. “-Want anyone else in this room except for Diana.”

She didn’t want to see anyone elses face right now. Diana waved a hand and Akko did everything she could to ignore the silent protest, shuffle of feet against floor, she was sure that she had seen Lotte linger a hand on the table as she had walked passed and the door closing behind, leaving complete silence to the room.

* * *

“Fuck!”

Typically, it was Amanda to be the first to run her mouth at the overspill of tension, and it was very normally Sucy or Hannah to be the first to shut her down but this time it was Jasminka who laid a hand on the red heads shoulder and pushed her down to sit. Amanda had spent the better part of an hour pacing after abandoning the room earlier they had moved down into the bar and it was only after one round of poker and _several_ drinks that she had become needlessly restless. They had said that they were going to bed to Akko, but really the tension could have been waded through. None of them would sleep soon.

They were tabled in front of the bar and despite the very incessant pressure of Jasminka behind her, Amanda was still vocalising her unfiltered thoughts. They had attempted a round of cards; anything but drinking in filtered mundane conversation meant that Amanda had just been working herself up.  
“You reckon she’ll be okay with all of this? Is she going to bail?”

It wasn’t like her to be nervous, Amanda could lead a group of people into battle if she so desired; she was charismatic, fearless, even dependable. But outside of actions and responsibility; when left to her thoughts she was quick to decision and even quicker to doubt and step back. She had been the only one that had staunchly put up a fight for Akko to remain in the dark, to allow this myriad of deceit to continue. Because the way the uncertainty tore at her heart and head pushed her instincts to war with one another left her like… this.

At varying points, they had all stared down barrels of guns, been shot, been stabbed, bludgeoned, had all come within fractions of losing their lives but Akko was hardly something they could control and for Amanda that made all the bigger difference when trying to rationalise the thought process, letting Akko in completely meant exposing her to all of their mess. All of this pain.

“She’s not going to bail.” Sucy spoke out almost reverently from behind the bar, dragging out a bottle of vodka before walking over the the table that the others were sat around. Honestly she had mistakenly believed that Amanda would simply _accept_ the words and shut up but that had never been her strong point.   
“Oh yeah,” Amandas tone was shockingly mocking, sarcastic and to the point. “because you know exactly what’s going to happen at all times… We’re only in this mess because of _you”_

Mess? Ohhh they all lived with their own personal turmoils and were all responsible for their own. No one else had that right. Had Amanda had too much to drink? Just what did she think she was going to achieve right now.

Hannah closed her eyes and counted to ten. _Please don’t rise to this. Please don’t fight now.  
_ She didn’t even get to ‘two’ before Sucy had retorted and the exasperation was clear on all of their faces. Her and Barbara were going to have to break this up. _Or, would they need to?  
_ “What exactly are you going to do about it .O’Neil.” Sharp. Venomous. Intentioned. 

_Ugh._ Hannah and Barbara shared a look.

It had been boiling for a week.   
Jasminka had taken Sucys actions as a huge personal sleight and in turn Amanda had, very predictably, turned into the most antagonistic protective mess of one of her oldest friends.

Sucy discarded the bottle on the table and tilted her face up to look down and scrutinise with her usual inflection. Teeth jagged, eyes sharp and while her frame had been described by Hannah as wiry there was always a strange readiness to Sucys posture and she didn’t think that she would be able to get around the table to Amanda in time should she rise to this. Jasminka was holding her by the shoulders still. It would be fine.

Sucy had bypassed them all into _actually_ talking about at least the prospect of bringing all of this up. No they couldn’t just go along and hope everything was okay. _Akko deserved to know_. Amandas inaction didn’t stop everything else from happening around them and Sucy hadn’t been able to sit idly by. If it meant that Amanda had made her the villain of this piece, she would gladly step into that role.

The villain she would be. 

Sucy raised a hand and gestured in the direction of both Amanda and Jasminka when she hadn’t been immediately riled up to a response. Being held down didn’t stop her from glaring daggers up at her and Sucy could only watch as Amandas hands clenched and unclenched into fists and her feet twisted onto her tiptoes. Amanda was getting ready to dart at her and she was going to be ready. Exactly as planned. 

Sucy always dealt with tension face on, or maybe it was more true that she saw likely outcomes and planned for them accordingly. Amanda had been so incredibly vocal against her that whatever was about to happen was an inevitability, they would clash; but she needed just a little more goading and then this would be over.

“If you’re going to complain, _do something about it_ ”

Amanda was always going to have a tipping point, Sucy was counting on it.

What she did not count on, however, was Jasminka being the one to step between them both. Despite her towering stature over Sucy she moved quicker than could have been anticipated. Feet slid against the floor for speed and her right hand twisted round to land a hit to Sucys front.

Hannah and Barbara were definitely going to have to break this up but they could not and hadn’t moved quick enough.

Sucy raised a hand in an attempt to deflect the grip coming to her front, shifting her body weight to take a frontal hit but misjudged the quick change of opponent and missed the feint. Jasminkas other arm came round, strong hand gripping the material around her neckline and pulled her closer and off balance; she was going for a grapple and the only thing Sucy could do in response was angle her body backwards to gain some space. She just hadn’t been quick enough.

Feet left the ground and in an instant her back was slammed onto the table she had discarded the bottle on, the action shaking the surface and around Sucy she barely acknowledged the cacophony of other sounds behind the hiss of her breath cut short and winded; a shout, a glass knocking to the floor and smashing, chair legs screeching against the floor. One of her hands scrabbled for purchase against the table whilst the other smashed Jasminka in face. Later on she would recant the gritty look on Jasminka’s face as her knuckles smashed into her cheek, nails scratching four long angry red lines against her skin and smirk.

But right now she had a problem, already pinned under Jasminka’s weight, who had caught her assaulting hand and held it against the table, the grip was still against her and the material at her neck only now the pressure and weight was being ground _down_. Already winded and now with breathing restricted she only saw one way out. Before Jasminka could do anything else, Sucys only free hand gripped around to find the bottle of vodka but found purchase on a half filled glass instead. 

That would have to do.

She didn’t even think about the liquid which she spilt half on the table and half on herself, a thought for another time crossed her mind, she would need to shower after all of this.   
Sucy brought the glass up and smashed the butt of it onto Jasminkas forehead in an impressive overarching movement.   
It was a miracle it hadn’t smashed in her hand or against the face it impacted against, but even without shards of glass the shock of the impact recoiled Jasminka back just enough for Sucy to pull herself back onto the table, upper body leant up and bracing her balance to shift one leg up and smashing her foot underneath Jasminkas chin.

Honestly, she was proud of that kick and it couldn’t have landed more perfectly.

She had planned on baiting Amanda and deflecting every sloppy frustrated hit that would come at her from. She hadn’t planned on _Jasminka_ ending this tension. Sucy was so wildly clever she knew exactly how to get the response she wanted. So it was all the wilder that she hadn’t seen Jasminka breaching this first. Sucy fought with everything and anything she had on her, she was lithe and destructive and the complete opposite to Jasminka who used size and strength to overcome and subdue. 

It was no surprise that Jasminka was still standing, and even less of a surprise to find Sucy advancing having pulled a knife _from somewhere_.

But they weren’t the only ones here.

Amanda had bolted up to assist Jaz before being shunted towards her chair once more, Hannahs hands on her shoulders after vaulting over the corner of the table to get to her quickly enough to stop whatever on earth she thought she was going to do. Placating her was easy, hands moving from shoulders and down her front, hugging her to the chair and words warned and whispered into her ear.

It was Barbara who had the harder task, especially as the pause that had been held between Jasminka and Sucy had devolved into another set of fluid movements. Sucy was so much smaller and lighter but _lithe_ and resourceful so it was no surprise but utterly dismaying to see the knife glinting in her hands. This ended now. This had to end now.

Barbara was never normally one for brash actions but... needs must. 

She picked up a wooden bar stool from the table across from them and in a fluid movement turned around, bringing it far above her head and smashed it down in the direction of both Jasminka and Sucy. 

The noise was atrocious, the snap crunch and splinter of wood shattered into different directions and peltered them with offshoots. Barbara had premeditated this and still flinched at the force but thankfully neither of the brawlers had, because they were both completely frozen and just staring at her.  
“I think that’s quite enough!” She was loud and commanding, standing back at height and watching a stool leg roll onto the far side of the room. “What were you both _thinking_?!”

And then she looked between the both of them. Sucys breathing was heavy and the only sound now, but Jasminka whilst calm was sporting a rivulet of blood down the side of her face from a split in her eyebrow, the four angry scratches across her face standing out like a waving red flag. Now all of them were silent and still tense and on edge and _this wasn’t supposed to be how the evening ended_. It wasn’t her and Hannahs job to baby them all the time but apparently on their list of ‘roles’ stopping each of them from trying to kill one another, was. She was so frustrated, so angry.

Sucy was… Sucy, sure she could have expected something like this, she was manipulative and an aggressor but Jasminka…“I didn’t expect this from you” Barbara admitted, and she was standing literally between them both now, feet between stool debris. Jasminka looked… Dark and broody and… sad. She looked sad. They were both still, so silent.

Right. Yes, okay. Time to fix this.   
She took a tiny moment to catch Hannahs gaze, her partner taking a moment to nod in her direction.

“Hannah. Take Amanda upstairs. Her room” Barbara started without any fanfare, voice authoritative, “Get some sleep, tomorrow we will be addressing this. All of this. All of us.”  
To Amandas credit she did get up, but she did slap away Hannahs hand after the added comment and there was a tiny little part of Barbaras heart that dropped when she thought that there was going to be another fight. 

So when both redheads left the room, Hannah diligently tailing Amanda, she could address Jasminka. The blood wasn’t unusual for them, but it _was_ unusual for it to have been caused by friendly fire like this. Barbara sighed before speaking.   
“You have a split on your eyebrow, it’s not deep but you’re going to have swelling and likely a black eye. You’re gonna wake up with a headache. Go and get some water, an ice pack and some painkillers. Do not touch it unless it’s with a clean cloth. Go to my room and wait for me there. I’ll need to glue it”

And then Jasminka just didn't move and Barbara narrowed her eyes. She had given an _instruction_ and it was to be _followed_ . There was no way she hadn’t been heard. Barbara could see the cogs tick on Jasminkas face, she could see the loathing and the aggression, she could see it in her fists and her tense statue. She didn’t care about whatever else was going on right now.  
“First aid comes first, sleep second. And whatever you’re thinking about right now is after both of those.” Barbara spoke whilst building herself up to height, not doubting her authority but doubting whatever was happening with Jasminka. This was very, very unlike her.

“This is not over” The russian accent that accompanied the words was _thick_ and that’s when Barbara realised just how much of a furor Jasminka was in. It was a very occasional joke, the angrier she got the more her accent slipped and here she was, directing all of that at Sucy and now _her._ They had dealt with worse in the past and to Barbaras sheer delight - if it could even be called that at this point- Jasminka turned around and walked out the door, but not before she paused and spat a globule of blood out of her mouth onto the floor.

Well that was gross. Add potential bitten tongue or cheek into the list of minor injuries Barbara would need to address later. What a treat, she had really lucked out..

But now, left alone with Sucy, she could breath a little easier, especially when she turned around to look at her and the knife had disappeared, Barbara had made a distinct look over to check for it and could see nothing. But also, no injuries. That was… Fortunate. Far too fortunate. Still, she needed to check and ever nonchalant at these situations, Sucy wasn’t always accommodating but at least this time she played along.  
“Broken bones?”  
“No.”  
“Cracked ribs?”  
“No.”  
“Cracked anything?”  
“No.”  
“Bruises?”  
“Maybe my neck”  
“Ah”

Barbara moved forward but stopped when Sucy put her hands up,  
“If I wanted your help I would ask” - A glimmer of a warning, a sheer deadpan and a very insistent and steeled gaze.

Oh! Sucy had such a way with words that it warmed her soul and just, really, really reminded her of just how pleasant her interactions could be. She was like a breath of fresh air! A note of music to her ears! A rose amongst thorns! A simple buoy of kindness amongst an unsympathetic sea!  
Barbara _hated_ the despondancy.

And so, responded with just as much joy and happiness.  
“I’m not asking”

Another step forward. Another strange stand off. _Another_ strange interaction. Barbara was just standing in front of Sucy and being regarded so nonchalantly and honestly that just made things so much more infuriating. This was in part, her fault and It was so late she was tired and almost at a loss of what to do next. She needed to check Sucy and then go upstairs and help Jaz and then… Someone else could deal with this mess in the morning.  
“Then I am not injured” Sucy drawled finally, making sure that Barbara really got the message that her assistance was not needed.

It was the nonchalance and audacity that was making her see red.

“Jaz threw you onto the table, Sucy!” Barbara hissed, stepping forward and aggressively pointing in her direction, encroaching on personal space and the only thing that it encouraged Sucy to do, was to push off from leaning against the table and walk around it, giving them both space.  
“She threw you into a table because _you_ goaded them into it”  
“Yes and I kicked and smashed her in the face, I would say we’re even” Sucy responded with her usual flare, a strange mix of lilting despondency and venom. “And in case it wasn’t obvious, I had been working on Amanda.”

Ugh!

  
“You are incorrigible!”  
“It was very clearly self defence”  
Barbara twitched, her raised hands balling into fists and bought down by her side, had they been in a group she would have been teased for having a tantrum but right now…  
“Aaaarrghgh!”

It was the _perfect_ time for footsteps to sound in behind her.  
Lotte couldn’t have taken a more ideal moment to waltz in, if waltzing was the slow dejected trudge of someone who would have liked to have been in bed three hours ago and wishing they had avoided a very difficult conversation. So it really was just a _delight_ to walk into… This.

And they were a sight to be honest, Sucy looking cagey behind the table, Barbara riled up amongst the debris of… A chair? A smashed glass on the floor, an upended stool had been kicked away and just…What had happened? Where were the others? Was that _blood on the floor?  
_ “What did you guys _do?”_ Lotte asked, with way too much sincerity and care laced through her tone. She just stood a little dumbfounded in the doorway, not taking that extra step in, as if for a second the floor was made of lava and another committed foot forward would succumb her to whatever fate had befallen either of the two in front of her. They really were a sight for sore eyes.

“We had a tea party, Lotte.” Barbara was far too quick to respond for her own good, snapping back. “What do you think happened.” It was said with as much venom as Sucy carried with her everyday. But with Barbara it was always mistimed, always directed in the wrong place. Lotte had always considered her and Sucy to have such a similar wit, but she didn’t often get to be on the other side of this from either of them. Barbara took longer to get to that bite, but she always recoiled quickly.

It was like watching someone go through the five stages of grief in a second, anger and then realisation and then a frustrated neutral. And Lotte was the one who got to watch, just stood there and witnessed Barbara drown that frustration in herself again, eyes locked and taking in the bewildering stand off she finally sighed, catching a small amount of movement in the background as Sucy moved a chair and sat down.  
Barbara looked so tired. “I can’t do this right now” she relented and if Lotte didn’t know any better, she could hear the slight strain and waver in her voice.

“Lotte.” The tone change was immediate and jarring, flat and to the point. Barbara was looking straight at the interloper to the scene and was all _business_ . “Sucy and Jasminka had a small incident. Please make sure she isn’t injured. I am going to see to Jaz.” she had started walking mid sentence, no longer looking _at_ Lotte, even as she got a small nod in response, but passed her, leaving no room for questions, no room for feelings or anything else. 

Two seconds later and Barbara was gone and Lotte was left staring across the room at Sucy. She’d been given about 20 seconds of information and that was apparently all the introduction she was going to get. Her partner _looked_ unharmed so the small phlegmy glob of blood on the floor would have been Jasminkas, but there was a lot of glass on the floor and the broken stool.

Well if Jasminka had smashed Sucy with a chair hard enough to break it, she wouldn’t have been standing, which meant...  
“Did you attack her with that?” Lotte asked with just a little bit of disbelief, and really she shouldn’t have been surprised when Sucy responded with a very sheer and sharp   
“No”

Lotte looked relieved, if not a little shell shocked to walk across the crunch of broken glass and sat down. It was maybe two or three in the morning and she had still been thinking about Akko, so all of this -The outcome of whatever scuffle had been had- was just jarring.  
The rare moment five hours ago of them all sharing a meal and laughing and enjoying each others company had been a real calm before the storm. They were all too high strung. And what was worse was Sucy had told her all of this would have happened. 

She had told her that Akko would respond with aggression, would calm down and accept them but would rattle herself with doubts not about what their group was doing but about _them_. Akko would be betrayed and she would stay. And Amanda would be wrung tight and on edge, would take it out on someone and Sucy would make sure that person would be her. And when this had all calmed down, they would all start to relax. Maybe. Hopefully.

“Hang on” Lotte started, sitting down in a chair next to Sucy and just, thinking, the silence from Sucy not unusual. “ _Jasminka_ attacked you? Not Amanda?” She asked, tone light and gentle as usual but questioning everything as though she was struggling to piece together those pieces, so when Sucy let out a deeper breath and leant back in her chair a little more and murmured a small affirmation, Lotte frowned. 

“That wasn’t part of the plan”   
“No it wasn’t”  
“What happens next?”

  
“We go to bed”

**\--**

Barbara was done. She was so done. 

Jasminka relented to the barest of first aid in silence, save for a grumpy apology and then a long sigh when she had finished. Her and Sucy’s little tussle hadn’t lasted very long at all but the effects were plain to see, she would be sporting a black eye tomorrow and a slightly swollen cheek and jaw, not to mention the small split in her eyebrow and lingering tinged red scratches across her face. Someone was going to have to explain this to Diana and Barbara knew, she just _knew_ that it was going to be herself.

Barbara had tried to make conversation, had tried to smooth over the fury sitting beneath the surface and evident in the furrowed brow whilst she cleaned and stitched the small split in Jasminkas eyebrow but she got nothing in response. Jasminka was so often the peace amongst them all, she was the one who ironed out their creases, who smiled when things went wrong but once in a blue moon she just… Snapped. 

It was, if anything, a small reminder not to underestimate Sucy.

Still, this had been emotionally exhausting and her habit of picking up the pieces in these situations left her tired and prone to those sharp tongued bitter sarcastic remarks. Her brain didn’t rest though, self imposed rules and responsibilities eating at her because if she didn’t do these things, who would? Who would take charge? If she hadn’t gone between Sucy and Jasminka would they have even been able to walk away at the end of it? She didn’t like thinking about it.

When all was said and done, first aid completed and blood washed from her hands, she had gone downstairs again, glass scrapped, broken stool taken care of, tidied up the room and finally with no outlying tasks to complete, could retire. So it was time to go to bed. Out of all of this, the only saving grace and silver lining was that she hadn’t heard any quiet or muffled voices since she was with Jasminka and she was likely the last one left awake. Except for Constanze. Conz would be awake somewhere. She was always awake somewhere. 

It was the rite of passage when you hit witching hours in the night, that every sound you made, every gentle click of your joints and scuffle of floor under foot became five times as loud so it only made sense that as Barbara journeyed upstairs she stilled her breath.  
It was out of courtesy, her room was on the same floor as several other bedrooms and to throw the towel in now and disrupt anyone from their sleep would just give her more work and she had already worked so hard.

Was her caution worth it? Had any of them deserved this effort? If it has been Amanda at the end of the night would she have been wincing at every noise? That grumbling bitterness ate away at her heart until she reached the top step, her door was within touching distance here, on her left, but her whole body just stopped. The door to Dianas room was just across from her, sitting in between hers and Hannahs on the left and Amandas on the right. 

Everything, this whole night had been because of Akko, she had been awake for hours after leaving their dinner up to this point, so had this all been worth it? She hadn’t _heard_ either Diana or Akko and she hadn’t even spoken to Lotte about it when she saw her an hour ago and Barbara could certainly kick herself for that. Sucy had wormed her way under her skin and righteously riled her up, she hadn’t thought about anything else at the time.

So she couldn’t say why, but her feet took those few extra steps completely blind, the dark dissipating from her vision and she held her breath, gripping the door handle and pulling the door to herself in the slowest action she had ever taken. 

If Diana was awake and in her room, Barbara would pay for this later. 

Still, the door handle turned, her breath hitched and she took a gamble, pushing the door open only inches. It took an achingly long time for her eyes to see through the dark and make out shapes and it was like a bravado had washed over her because once she had started she was going to finish this. Moonlight from a sliver in the curtains angled across half the room outlining every piece of furniture and item in its path, granting Barbara, by some miracle, a stolen picturesque view of both Diana and Akko solitary on the bed, above covers and still in clothes with their legs tangled together.

It was like witnessing an acute softness unbecoming of both of them, a tiny window of private intimacy stolen, but what it meant for _her_ and for _all_ of them was immense.

The relief almost killed her, she felt her breath staccato in her throat and very nearly forgot the dangerous game she was playing. Pulling back on the door in that same highly taut caution she closed it, the faintest clunk of wood settling and the door handle going back into place signalled the end of that venture.

But all at once it was too much too quickly. Relief built into goosebumps across her skin and warred with a tired mind and a pressure behind her eyes forced her to turn to her _right_ and not her left. Before she knew it the door to Amanda's room was open and her hands had gone through the same desperately controlled motions. She didn’t know why she was so sure that Hannah would be in here too but she hadn’t needed moonlight to step over the debris of _things_ Amanda always had laying around, she knew the route to take herself over to the edge of the double bed.

And she certainly hadn’t needed moonlight to unceremoniously pull back the covers off of Hannah, earning a deeply displeased and confused groaning from both of her and Amanda who she could see was barely squinting over and up at the shadow darkened form. There was silent pleading, gentle and guiding touch that lasted barely minutes and ended with Barbara down to her underwear and between both of them, face buried in the crook of Hannahs neck whilst she pulled Amandas hand from behind her and round to her waist.

They didn’t say anything, they didn’t need to and Barbara was sure that Amanda wouldn’t even if she _had_ needed to, She was always hard to rouse from a sleep and could feel the weight of the arm draped across her stomach slacken already, but Hannah at least tried. Pulling herself away from Barbara momentarily to adjust her body for comfort, shunting herself up the bed only slightly and kissing her lips, nose and forehead before slumping, one arm dangling uselessly outside the covers whilst the other resting as her shoulder and arm, pulling that around herself and keeping Barbara close.

It was unceremonious but touching and Barbara fell asleep feeling Hannahs breath on her hair and Amanda close on her back. She was safe. They were safe.


End file.
